


Long Way Down

by iwasnthere622



Series: Random Prompts [4]
Category: Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gangsters, Blood, Cars, Cloud is a thief, Gangs, Guns, Leon is a hit man, M/M, Theft, They are in rival gangs, Violence, rated for violence and language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-27
Updated: 2015-06-27
Packaged: 2018-04-06 09:35:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4216677
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iwasnthere622/pseuds/iwasnthere622
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cloud's breathing had slowed and he was two blocks away from crossing the invisible line dividing the claims staked on this town when a muffled thump from the backseat had him jumping in his chair and swerving to pull over, looking around frantically but he couldn't see anyone outside.</p><p>Slowly, trying to not make a sound, he turned around and nearly swallowed his tongue as he watched Leon sit up and yawn at him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Long Way Down

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt #202: Stole a car with someone sleeping in the back seat [Turns out that the car had already been stolen so basically you just stole a stolen car].  
> Pairing #27: Cloud Strife/Squall Leonhart (Kingdom Hearts/Final Fantasy)
> 
> Gang!AU in which Leon is a hit man of the Berserkers and Cloud is a thief of the Wolves.
> 
> Inspired by the song Long Way Down by Robert DeLong.

"Fuck!" Cloud cursed, forcing his body to move faster, sprinting around the corner, feet slapping the pavement and trying to breath quietly with aching lungs, trying to _listen_.

How the hell was he supposed to know that even though every Thursday for the past _two fucking months_ the leader of the Berserker gang spent the night at his girl's place that she was upstate visiting her parents tonight and he'd be fucking home?

His body reacted before he even processed the sound, ducking as bullets started flying and the shouts got louder, cursing and weaving, turning abruptly and jumping a fence. He needed to get the fuck out of their territory, now, before they caught him, killed him, or attracted the cops.

To be honest, he wasn't sure which option was the worst.

The shouts and curses following him got a little fainter as they struggled to hop the fence after him and he found himself grinning and thanking Zack for teaching him how to be as wily as he was.

He cut through another alley, shooting out into a dimly lit street with three or four working streetlights -- progress. He was almost out, if he could get some wheels he'd make it...

His lungs ached and his feet throbbed and his stomach was tense, heart racing as he ran. He skidded past a few cars that were too old, too secure, ticketed, before -- there!

Panting heavily, he stopped and hurried to the driver's side door, pulling out the bent wire of a former coat hanger, popping the lock in three seconds (thanks, Ax) and sliding in. He was surprised as hell to find the keys fucking sitting in the ignition but he wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth, starting the car and forcing himself not to just peel away from the curb, driving the speed limit and heading out of this part of town.

He didn't spare a thought to the car's owner beyond a brief notion that they were probably drunk, to leave the keys in it like that in this neighborhood. Or they were gang and cocky, in which case... Cloud smiled. Tonight might not be a complete loss, after all.

His breathing had slowed and he was two blocks away from crossing the invisible line dividing the claims staked on this town when a muffled thump from the backseat had him jumping in his chair and swerving to pull over, looking around frantically but he couldn't see anyone outside.

Slowly, trying to not make a sound, he turned around and nearly swallowed his tongue as he watched Leon yawn at him, shouting as the bastard reached up and flicked on the internal car light.

The night burned his eyes, blinding him for long seconds before his watering eyes would focus, part of him somewhat hysterically thinking that this close up, he wasn't sure which was more intimidating -- the scars jaggedly cutting Leon's face or the sleeves of tat's crawling over his arms.

Leon yawned again, blinking, lip rings glinting in the light. "Why the fuck did you steal my car?"

"This your car?" Cloud asked incredulously. "Dude, the keys were in the ignition! Since when are you that stupid? Or sleep in cars?"

Leon's eyes narrowed dangerously, sleep rapidly fading from his eyes as he answered, "I didn't say I owned it."

The way he said it, Cloud was suddenly reminded that Leon was the best hit man of the gang Cloud had just tried to rob and for all he knew there was a body in the trunk. His fear clouded his sense of irony at stealing an already stolen car.

"Uh, right," he swallowed, trying to slowly move his hand to the door handle, getting ready to bolt.

Leon looked around, eyebrows raised. "Why are we in my turf, Wolf?"

Cloud pulled his best poker face, not answering.

Leon's eyes narrowed, hand idly sliding to his pants pocket. "Answer, cub."

"I'm not a cub - I'm a Wolf!" Cloud snapped, flushing because he was scared and screwed and he knew it.

Leon snorted and just like that, relaxed into the seat, hands behind his head.

"All right, then, Wolf. Where are going?" 

"Outta Berserker land," Cloud muttered, trying to silently pop the automatic lock.

"Well, drive then," Leon said, nodding to the steering wheel and giving Cloud a look, daring him to turn his back and drive the car instead of running.

Cloud grit his teeth, slamming the car light out and plunging the interior into faded darkness again, ignoring how the hairs at the back of his neck were standing up as he faced forward again, streetlight catching on his rows of earrings and glinting as he put the car into drive.

Unfortunately, the little interlude of realizing he had company gave his pursuers time to catch up and as he pulled away from the curb, he met the eyes of two of those who were chasing him as they exited the opposite alley, everyone freezing for a moment before they started yelling and shooting and Cloud gunned it.

Leon, the bastard, started laughing. "Ah, caused some trouble I see," he grinned.

Cloud's heart was racing again, ducking bullets and spraying glass as the lunatic laughed in the back like this was a fucking amusement park ride.

His heart nearly stopped when the tires were shot out and the car coughed and grumbled and lurched to a stop.

"Out," Leon said, all laughter gone from his voice, exiting the car and dragging Cloud out with him, shoving him down behind the car for shelter.

"Church to your 7, go on my count," he ordered, no nonsense, and Cloud was too scared to do much but nod, a little confused why Leon wasn't just shooting him himself or handing him over. But when the hit man told him to run, he _ran_.

Just like Leon had said, there was a crumbling church a road over and he ran as fast as he possibly could for it, trying to ignore the sounds of gunfire and the slap of pursing footfalls.

A bullet grazed his leg as he made it to the big wooden doors but it barely slowed him, shoving inside and stopping for a moment in frozen panic before an arm was grabbing him and dragging him to the left, growling at him to _hurry up_.

He let Leon drag him further in, ducking with him between rows of pews.

Leon was watching the door and Cloud was staring at him. More specifically, at the blood running down his arm.

"You're hit," he choked out in a whisper, even more confused now.

"So're you," Leon muttered back, glancing at his leg only briefly.

Cloud shrugged, because yeah he'd been grazed and it burned like a motherfucker now that he was thinking about it, but he was pretty sure a bullet was in Leon's arm.

"Why're you... helping me?" Cloud dared to ask as the minutes of tense silence stretched. He didn't think he'd get an answer, until Leon replied softly.

"There's something of me in you."

Cloud gaped at him. "I'm _nothing_ like you." Cloud didn't hurt people.

Leon smirked. "You've got the same dark something twisted in you."

"If there's a shadow in me, then the dark is a _tidal wave_ inside of you," Cloud retorted, snorting a bit. Leon hurt and killed people. Cloud stole things. You couldn't compare them.

Before Leon could say anything, the church doors opened and four guys crept in. Shit. They were so dead. Well, Cloud was.

Leon picked up a hymnal and chucked it to the right of them, shoving Cloud to crawl along the pew and further away from the thugs when they open fired in the fucking church in the direction of the sound.

Leon boxed Cloud into the end of the aisle, bodily between him and the rest of his own gang, both of them barely breathing.

Leon turned and looked at him with... _something_ in his eyes, something that made Cloud lick his lips nervously in response, heart pounding so loudly surely they all could hear it.

And then Leon was kissing him and he was kissing back and the world stopped.

There was nothing gentle about the kiss, all tongue and teeth and the harsh stab of Leon's lip rings digging into him and Cloud thought one maybe nicked him because suddenly everything tasted coppery but also _Leon was kissing him_ and he couldn't bother to analyze anything further.

They kissed for forever and only a few seconds at the same time, and Cloud hadn't realized he'd been clinging to Leon, fingers tangled in his hair, until Leon pulled back.

Cloud stared at his slightly swollen lips, thinking that _he did that_ , feeling drunk and like Leon's lips held all the answers for him, that if he just keep kissing him...

"I'll save you a seat next to me in hell, Cub," Leon said, smirking, before he was standing up and striding confidently to the middle of the church, immediately cursing out the others for shooting at him.

Cloud sat in a daze as he listened to Leon convince them that he'd ran out the back and Leon had given him a reminder not to fuck with the Berserkers, the others not even questioning it.

He heard one of them mutter -- was he on the phone? -- that Squall had taken care of the kid and they were returning to base for medical.

He watched Leon walk of the church without looking back, slumping back and lifting his trembling fingertips to his lips.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! If you want to view the full list of prompts and pairings I'm working off of, please see the first work in this series.
> 
> Personal Tumblr: iwasnthere622  
> Supernatural Tumblr: maryslittleangel


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